Thirst (The Calvettis of New York 1)

Whatever moment we might have had has been lost.

I turn away from the window, rub my hand over my erection and close my eyes.

I’ll get off tonight to the fleeting image I have stored in my mind of her body in that bra and those shorts.

I crave more. I want to see more of her, know more about her and touch all of her.

Tonight I’ll have to settle for less.

***

“Look what the cat dragged in,” Lenore Halston calls back over her shoulder. “Rocco is here at the crack of dawn.”

She’s not lying. It’s early.

I barely slept last night.

After I pulled on a pair of black boxer briefs and jeans, I stood at the window and watched my neighbor leave with the brunette woman.

By the time I went to bed hours later, she hadn’t returned.

I woke with a start just after four a.m. and couldn’t help but notice that the overhead lights were still on in the apartment across from mine.

The bed was empty.

I went back to my bed, tossed and turned for an hour and then hit the pavement for a run.

Another quick shower and a cup of coffee were followed by a subway ride here.

Looking polished in a three-piece gray suit, Glenn Halston appears around a corner in the luxurious office he keeps on Park Avenue to feed his ego.

The man is worth as much as I am. He put his life savings in tech stocks before smartphones hit it big. He’s been a mentor of sorts to me for years, helping me navigate the world of investing in other people’s dream businesses.

He pushes h

is black-rimmed eyeglasses up the bridge of his nose. “You don’t come bearing gifts?”

I laugh aloud. “My presence isn’t enough?”

“It is for me,” Lenore, his wife, fans herself with a piece of paper as she looks over the black V-neck T-shirt and jeans I’m wearing. “You’re as handsome as ever, Rocco.”

“Compliments are the key to this man’s heart.” I tap my hand over the center of my chest.

“Enough with the flirting with my wife.” Glenn chuckles. “I’m not missing something here, am I? We don’t have a meeting planned for today.”

We don’t, but I want his take on the app Silas ran past me. I made a promise to Glenn that I would give him a shot at investing in Silas’s next venture after the success of Jewel Jinx.

I spoke to Lilly Parker on the phone about the app yesterday afternoon. She told me to jump in with both feet and she wants a percentage of the action too. I’m here to give Glenn the option of doing the same.

“I have an opportunity you might be interested in,” I say, resting an elbow on the reception desk.

He leans closer, his blue eyes intense. “Should we bring Rhoda in on this?”

Rhoda McCullough, the third in our trio of angel investors, has zero interest in anything tech related. Initially, I thought that was because of her age. The woman is a breathtaking seventy-year-old with a penchant for the finer things in life and younger men. Her current husband is just shy of fifty-five.

“It’s not in her wheelhouse,” I explain.

He glances over at his wife before his gaze lands on me again. “Rhoda has a few new prospects. She wants us to set up something for them next week. Do you have time for that?”